1st Guards Regiment on foot

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1st Guards Regiment on foot

active 1806-1919
Country Kingdom of Prussia Prussia
Armed forces Prussian Army
Branch of service infantry
Insinuation Guard Corps
Former locations Potsdam
motto "Semper Talis"
Prince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia walking as a captain in the 1st Guard Regiment

The 1st Guards Regiment of Foot was an infantry joined the Prussian army . In 1806, after Prussia's defeat by Napoleon in the double battle at Jena and Auerstedt, it was rebuilt on foot from the remains of the earlier guards and was the body regiment of the kings of Prussia from the start . With the exception of Wilhelm II , who also wore the uniforms of other regiments, since 1806 all Prussian kings and most of the Princes of Prussia wore the uniform of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot. The King of Prussia was also head of the regiment , chief of the 1st  battalion and chief of the 1st  company of this regiment. Therefore, this regiment also had the highest rank within the army, which was shown, among other things, in the fact that the officer corps of the 1st Guard Regiment was allowed to parade past the throne at the traditional New Year's reception before the imperial princes and the diplomatic corps . Unofficially there was also talk of the "First Regiment of Christianity".

The regiment and the bulk of its soldiers were in the barracks on Priesterstrasse in Potsdam across from the Potsdam Garrison Church and diagonally across from the City Palace . The close ties of the regiment to its royal chiefs were based on the personal leadership by the king and the fact that all princes of Prussia were hired as lieutenants in this regiment in the army on their tenth birthday in order to receive their military training there, Also on the fact that most of the practical service took place in the pleasure garden directly in front of the palace .

In addition to the guard and representational tasks typical for guards, the 1st Guards Regiment also acted as a teaching and experimental force on foot in peacetime . Not only were new clothing, equipment and weapons tried out and tested for the entire infantry before they were introduced , but new regulations were also applied in schools and, if necessary, improved before they were issued for the army. In this context it should also be understood that the teaching infantry battalion in Potsdam was attached to the 1st Guards Regiment on foot, whose officers included those of the battalion.

Like all regiments of the Old Army (until 1871 the Prussian Army , then the German Army ), the 1st Guards Regiment was disbanded on foot after the First World War and became part of the Reichswehr . There the tradition was carried on by the 1st Company of Infantry Regiment 9 until the end of the Second World War . Since 1961 the guard battalion at the Federal Ministry of Defense (initially only with the 2nd company, since 1991 as a battalion) has continued the tradition. As early as 1921, however, the former soldiers of the 1st Guards Regiment founded an association to cultivate tradition and camaraderie, which the following troops also joined. According to the motto of the regiment and its traditional successors " semper talis ", which was and is also the battle cry of these troops, this association, which still exists today, is called "Semper talis Bund".

Development of the regiment

precursor

Tin soldiers of Infantry Regiment No. 15 von der Goltz or Crown Prince ; 1720-1730
Tin soldiers of the King's Regiment No. 15; 1799-1807

Before the reorganization and reorganization of the army after 1806, two regiments of the Prussian infantry had Garderang, which are also considered to be the immediate regular troops of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot. These were the regiments that the soldier king Friedrich Wilhelm I and his son Friedrich the Great had each led as crown prince , in order to raise them to their respective body regiment after their coronation . Frederick the Great received the guard rank of his father's regiment. The two regiments are presented in their own articles.

Thanks to the previous regiments, the line of tradition can be traced back to June 10, 1675, the day infantry regiment No. 6 prince elector , lead back.

Lineup

In the battle of Jena and Auerstedt on October 14, 1806, the two old Prussian guards infantry regiments No. 6 and 15 went down with the rest of the army. Only one platoon of the life company of the 1st  Battalion Life Guard No. 15 under the leadership of the second lieutenant Julius Ludwig von Pogwisch was on the way to Memel as a guard over the luggage of the royal family and to cover the royal headquarters . On November 4th, 1806, the royal headquarters and with it this train arrived in Graudenz .

“The king was already fully informed of the events in Prenzlau and Erfurt . On the same day they ordered that the command of Second Lieutenant von Pogwisch should form the tribe and depot for the newly established footguard; that, furthermore, the small number of "unguarded guards" who arrived in Graudenz on the 3rd, along with a few convalescents, were to be incorporated into this depot, and that all the guards who arrived further away were to come to the same depot. His Majesty therefore viewed this tribe as a continuation of the Old Guard, as it was later said on the most varied of occasions, and if you further ordered that the regiments garrisoning in West and East Prussia should hand over suitable men to the guard depot, so this was just the same kind of recruitment that had always existed in the Guard. […] Already on the march to Graudenz, the Royal Equipage Colonne was joined by many commanded and dispersed soldiers from various regiments, which, as far as they were suitable for the guard, were hired at the depot. As a result, the Guard Depot, which had grown to some fifty men, marched with the Royal Headquarters from Graudenz via Freistadt, Deutsch Eylau to Osterode on November 15th . The headquarters stayed here until the 24th and the first replacement teams from the East Prussian regiments, some 30 men, who had been ordered to arrive at the depot. Since there were no uniforms for them, the department got a very colorful appearance, which continued to increase over the next two months. "

The nucleus of the future 1st Guards Regiment on foot was set up under the name Guard Depot . It was a kind of detention center for out of the captivity , thought-convicts, a prisoner of war fugitive and all other suitable men who were to form the stem of the new Guard on foot. According to this, the king intended to reorganize his foot guards and thus also the entire army in the collapse.

Wilhelm II rides the front of the 1st Guard Regiment on foot (painting by Carl Röchling )

construction

After Second Lieutenant von Pogwisch initially only had 25 men from the personal company of the former guards, this small number doubled within two weeks thanks to members of the old guards who, after the surrender of their defeated armies, made their way to the royal headquarters on sometimes the most adventurous routes. This was made even more difficult by the fact that this headquarters was constantly moving. Within a further week and a half, the first replacement teams arrived from West and East Prussia, who had been selected from the regiments there for the guard, transferred to them and set off on the march. On November 24, 1806, the guard depot numbered about 80 men. It was therefore unsuitable and not intended for combat missions. Rather, it served not only in name as a depot for the gradually but constantly arriving soldiers of the old guards. Some of them had been wounded in the fighting against the French troops and had to heal their wounds before they could set out on the long, dangerous and arduous journey, or they had to manage to escape from captivity. Within a further two months, enough men and officers had gathered in Memel that on January 24, 1807, the guard depot could be formed into two companies. On the one hand, Pogwisch continued to command the entire Guard Depot, but had also been given direct command of the 1st  Company , which later became the Leibcompanie. The 2nd company received second lieutenant Heinrich Werner Friedrich von Below. As a result of the continued influx of people, the king saw himself prompted in April to relieve Second Lieutenant von Pogwisch of the overall command, but to leave him command of the 1st Company. In place of the still inexperienced, young officer, on April 16, 1807 he transferred command to Major Gustav von Kessel . During this time there were still fighting between the Prussians, allied with Russia, against Napoleon . The defeat of the allied troops in the Battle of Friedland and the occupation of the Prussian coronation city of Königsberg by the French finally led to the armistice that preceded the Peace of Tilsit . On the occasion of this armistice, Friedrich Wilhelm III. on June 27, 1807 in Piktuphnen near Tilsit a very high cabinet order (AKO):

"Since an armistice has now also been concluded on the Prussian side, this is the most favorable moment to form 1 battalion of 4 companies from the two companies of the Guard, and you have to make this change immediately."

In order to strengthen the internal cohesion of the troops, the previous companies were dissolved and the soldiers were distributed in such a way that the people from the former 1st Battalion Life Guard No. 15, to the 2nd Company the people from Battalion No. 6 and Grenadier Guard No. to the 3rd and 4th companies came the people from the Guard Regiment No. 15. The teams from other regiments were distributed among the companies so that they were about equally strong. In the meantime, the musically gifted king had found the time to compose a march for his new guard. This can still be found today as March 1st Battalion Guard in the Army March Collection (AM I, 23) and was the presentation march of this battalion.

After the peace treaty had been signed in Tilsit on July 7, 1807, the guard received significant growth from the Krockow Freikorps , which had been disbanded in the course of this treaty and which had done excellently during the siege of Danzig . Rittmeister Count Krockow, who came from the Blücher hussar regiment , had formed this free corps of more than 1000 men in Danzig in mid-January 1807 from volunteers and ranciers of all weapons. According to a slogan of July 14th, 1807, the newly formed guard should no longer be called and written as the “Royal Body Guard” or something similar, as has often been the case before, but only “Guard on foot”.

The following year and a half passed largely calmly and were devoted to the formation and training of the battalion, up to the AKO on November 9, 1808:

“My dear Major von Kessel! I hereby give you the task of dividing the guard on foot into two battalions, each with four companies [...], after which you will then take care of what is necessary. I am your sympathetic king. signed Friedrich Wilhelm "

Major von Kessel halved the existing companies so that a new 1st and 2nd company were formed from the previous 1st company, and the 3rd and 4th companies were formed from the previous 2nd company. This was the new 1st Battalion. The 5th and 6th Companies were formed from the previous 3rd Company, the 7th and 8th Companies from the previous 4th Company. If you look at the regular teams of the individual companies, from now on the teams of the old 1st Battalion Life Guard No. 15 formed the new 1st and 2nd companies. The men of Battalion Grenadier Guard No. 6 the new 3rd and 4th Company, those of Regiment Guard No. 15 the new 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Company, i.e. the 2nd Battalion. The advantages of this type of expansion were, on the one hand, to maintain the internal solidarity of the troops and, on the other hand, to have half of the personnel in all companies as an experienced tribe to which the newcomers could adapt. The AKO of November 12, 1808 gave the regiment newly formed from these two grenadier battalions the name Regiment Guard on Foot . The commander did not have much time to concentrate on building the regiment. Just four months later, the next AKO came on March 17, 1809, which ordered the grenadier battalions to be increased to 600 men each, an additional guard depot to recruit new men in Königsberg under the direction of three officers and to form themselves to prepare for the formation of another light battalion, likewise 600 men strong. This additional battalion should therefore be formed from fusiliers , grenadiers were considered heavy infantry . The idea of ​​mixing the two types of infantry in one regiment was at the height of the tactical thinking of the time. This enabled this regiment to use column tactics in any form without the admixture of foreign troops . With AKO on June 12, 1809, this new battalion was named Guard Fusilier Battalion , but in the association of the Guard on Foot Regiment.

Guard infantryman of the EGRzF 1825 (engraving by Friedrich Johann Gottlieb Lieder )

With AKO of May 1811, a normal infantry battalion was set up from contributions from all infantry regiments of the army , which also came under the command of the Guard Regiment on foot. As the name suggests, the purpose of this unit was to be a teaching and experimental force, to create the "norm". The Guards on Foot regiment, on the other hand, had the task of representing and guarding the king and his headquarters and, as an elite regiment, was supposed to act as an elite regiment in a decisive position. End of March 1812 consisting of teams Regiment Garde du Corps and the normal infantry battalion, a combinirtes Guard Battalion set that are already on by AKO from February 20, 1813 Reserve Battalion of the Guards and normal battalion was relabelled and subsequently belonged to the Guards Foot Regiment as a Guard Reserve Battalion . With AKO on June 20, 1813, the normal infantry battalion withdrew from the regiment's association in order to become part of the 2nd Guards Regiment on foot with two other battalions . With the same AKO, the name of the 1st Guards Regiment was established for the previous regiment. However, the official founding day of the younger original regiment, Infantry Regiment No. 15, was set much later by Wilhelm II, August 1, 1688.

The main royal orders that led to the 1st Guards Regiment on foot were:

  • AKO 0November 2, 1806 Setup of guard depot (25 men)
  • AKO January 24, 1807 Formation of two companies
  • AKO June 27, 1807 Formation of Battalion Guard to four companies
  • AKO July 14, 1807 Definition of the name Guard on foot
  • AKO 0November 9, 1808 Division into and growth to two battalions
  • AKO November 12, 1808 Designation in Regiment Guard on Foot
  • AKO March 17, 1809 Order to set up a third battalion as a fusilier battalion
  • AKO June 20, 1813 Named in the 1st Foot Guard Regiment after the establishment of another Foot Guard regiment

Uniforms

1807

Guards Regiment on Foot 1812 (painting by Richard Knötel )

The shako , a helmet form of the Hungarian hussars , was introduced in 1807 as a completely new headgear . A silver guard star on the front . On Sundays and at parades, a white goose feather plume 13 inches long and about 7-9 inches wide was worn on the shako  . The plume of the NCOs had single black feathers at the bottom. A black linen cover was worn in ordinary service.

The officers' shako was made of finer felt , the pompom was made of silver, the star of the black eagle order showed the tips extending from the center in silver, and in contrast to the men and officers, the middle part was provided with an enameled central shield. In this central shield, according to the regimental history, the eagle was silver-colored, the base orange, soon gold, the currency ribbon white, the edges and the “ SUUM CUIQUE ” motto gold-plated, branches green with golden stems and red-brown fruits. On each side there was a small, silver-plated, heraldic Prussian eagle. The shakos preserved in 1807 remained unchanged in shape until April 1814 before Paris.

The skirt was made of dark blue cloth with a low, open collar. The Swedish cuffs were also open. The lining under the cuff, the cuffs and the lapels made of red cloth. In these days the new guard received their characteristic uniform details, which also included the silver buttons (in contrast to the majority of the rest of the army, which had tombac or gold buttons), these in front in two rows of eight buttons each. In addition, two similar buttons on each cuff and two more buttons at the waist. The skirt and lap were lined with white or red cloth until April 4, 1817, then as with the line with Boy. A silver cord ran around the lower end of the collar . On the left shoulder was a white armpit flap , held in place by a silver-colored button, for the cartridge pouch - bandolier . The white epaulette color was chosen according to the new nomenclature of the emerging Prussian army and stands (as it does today) for "one".

The trousers were now made of lightly mottled gray cloth, with gaiters over the shoes, slit open at the bottom of the outside of the trousers, provided with three buttons covered with cloth, and fastened under the shoes with leather straps. The pants were made wide and very comfortable from the knee up and lined with gray canvas. The officers wore black-gray, cloth-covered trousers that reached down to the foot and were worn over the boots (officers had no gaiters here).

The grenadiers' leather gear was white from the start and remained so until 1918, contrary to the line that later got black leather gear (except for the fusilier battalion, black leather gear here too).

1824

Another indication of the close ties between the Prussian and Russian armies was the Russian-style grenadier hats given to the 2nd Battalion (grenadiers) by AKO on March 30, 1824 in memory of the previous regiments . The fact that the 2nd Battalion (grenadiers) was awarded the grenadier caps was probably based on an error. Because actually all ranzoniers of the Grenadiergarde Battalion No. 6 in the 2nd Company of the 1807 regiment regiment on foot were hired. Companies 3 and 4 were then formed together with the levies from the personal company. Therefore the 1st Battalion (grenadiers) should have deserved these caps. After the first parade with the new grenadier caps, they were awarded to the 1st Battalion (grenadiers) by AKO on August 10, 1824.

1842

On October 23, 1842, the helmet , which was soon popularly known as the “ Pickelhaube ”, was introduced to the Prussian Army. Again in contrast to most other regiments, it had silver fittings here. In the front, the First Guard Regiment carried the silver-colored Guard Eagle on foot, initially without any motto. On top of it was the silver guard star, which, as before, had an enamelled core and was slightly arched for officers. Only the scale chains and star screws on the officers' cross-leaf fittings were gold-plated. As a special feature, the officers of this regiment wore hexagonal fluted helmet tips, which were otherwise only reserved for generals. A simple, single-breasted tunic was also introduced on the same date . This kept the old regiment-specific badges in shape and color. The tunic kept the color of the old tailcoat , that is, blue with red lugs . The strands also remained the same as before, i.e. white embroidered with a red mirror for crews and silver embroidery for officers. The collar was initially not in full color, but blue with a red flap and, as before, also square. On this flap then sat the braids .

Field gray uniform

The distinguishing features of the largely identical field-gray uniforms were Swedish cuffs , buttons made of nickel , double white strands on the collar and white shoulder flaps (this differs from the M 1915 peace uniform : here the shoulder flaps were basically white and the EGRzF therefore had no shoulder flaps, i.e. simply white) . As a special feature of the 1st Company, the shoulder buttons had an "L" (for "Leibkompanie", the name of the 1st Company).

1st Guards Regiment on Foot (painting by Carl Röchling , 1894)

On the steel helmet was Hohenzollern worn crest.

Locations

On March 13, 1810, the fusilier battalion moved from Berlin to Potsdam , followed by the two grenadier battalions on April 10, 1810 . With that, the new guard had returned to their usual place on foot. They came back, some of them to the old bourgeois quarters, and always garrisoned in Potsdam until they were dissolved.

In 1862 the 1st Battalion moved from the citizens' quarters to various small barracks, which were located in Heilig-Geist-Str. and Gardes-du-Corps-Straße, at the Berliner Tor and in the Elisabethstraße in Potsdam. From April 1866, central accommodation began in the converted old rifle factory. First the body, 2nd and 3rd companies of the 1st battalion moved into the facilities of the former factory, the 4th company still remained in the barracks at Neustädter Tor. The relocation of these three companies dragged on until 1875. The 2nd Battalion was housed in private quarters in the Dutch quarter before it was able to move into the barracks on Wall on October 1, 1878. On October 1, 1885, the fusilier battalion was able to move into the former rifle factory. By then it was after companies separately, the 9th Company at the Berliner Tor, the 10th Company halfway into Elizabeth Street, the other half in the Holy Ghost Road, the 11th Division in the Gardes du Corps -Straße and finally the 12th Company in Heilig-Geist-Straße. Finally, the 4th Company moved into the new regimental headquarters and the regiment was now completely assembled in a single barracks.

Map of the barracks of the 1st Guards Regiment on Foot 1909

The occupancy was as follows

  • New block (north wing of the barracks, Priesterstraße): 4th, 9th and 10th companies
  • Old rifle factory (middle wing of the barracks, An der Gewehrfabrik): Leib-, 2nd and 3rd companies
  • Old block (south wing of the barracks, left of the main entrance): 2nd battalion
  • Old block (south wing of the barracks, to the right of the main entrance): 11th and 12th companies.

Flags of the regiment

When the army was reorganized and reorganized in the years after 1806, the battalions were also given new flags. In the Prussian army, the flags were kept in the private apartments of the respective battalion commanders, who therefore always had a flag post under rifle in front of their house . The origin of this custom went back to the times when the troops were not yet in barracks, but were housed in citizens' quarters, as was the case for a long time with the 1st Guard Regiment on foot. However, the flags of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot were all in the City Palace in Potsdam. This could be entered from the Lustgarten via a flight of stairs, which led to the so-called flag room . The collection of a battalion flag from this area was carried out with at least one platoon of guards grenadiers under arms and playing with music and, like the removal , the return of the flag, which took place in the same way, was a popular spectacle for the citizens of Potsdam. However, this did not happen too often, as the flags were only taken out of the castle for specific purposes.

  • Flag of the 1st Battalion from 1808 to 1889

  • Flag of the 1st Battalion from 1889

  • Flag of the 2nd Battalion and the Fusilier Battalion until 1900

  • Flag of the 2nd Battalion from 1900

  • Flag of the Fusilier Battalion from 1900

The old flags

After 1806, three different types of flag were initially awarded to the newly established troops. Depending on the organizational assignment, the battalions received a guard flag, a line flag or a Landwehr flag. After the army reform, a grenadier flag was also introduced in 1861. The battalions that would later form the 1st Guards Regiment on foot received the Guard flag. The flags differed in the design of the flag cloth and the color of the flagpole. Guard flags had yellow flagpoles and not a dull black cross that ran over the entire flag, but a single-colored embroidered cloth. The flag was square with a side length of 142 cm. It was nailed to the top of the 2.84 meter long flagpole with 150 silver-plated nails. Of these, 100 nails fastened the cloth lengthways, 14 nails were driven in a ring at the upper end and the remaining 36 nails at the lower end in three rows of twelve nails each around. At the lower end of the flagpole was a 7 cm long iron flag shoe , at the upper end a 22 cm high brass flag tip . The flag thus had a total length of 3.13 meters. The top of the flag was broken and usually showed the intertwined letters "FWR" for Friedrich Wilhelm Rex (lat. King ). The 1st and 2nd Battalion had an iron cross in the top of the flag instead of this signature . This award was given to all flags, and in this detour also to the battalions entrusted with them, that had been before the enemy in the wars of liberation . However, the regiment's fusilier battalion carried a flag tip with a signature, although it had participated in the wars of liberation. This was due to the purpose of the flags at the time to serve as a direction and assembly point for the battalions. The fusiliers , who were not supposed to form battalion columns, but fought in disbanded swarms of riflemen in front of the front or on the wings , should withdraw into the protection of the battalion squares in the event of a superior threat from the enemy . This corresponded to the column tactics that were emerging in those years . As a result, the fusilier battalions did not carry their flags with them in the battle, as no unified operation was planned. Thus, these flags were not awarded the Iron Cross. However, all battalions that fought in these wars, regardless of whether they waved their flag in front of the enemy or not, received a flag ribbon in the color of the ribbon of the war memorial coin for 1813/15 , orange with black and white borders.

Consecration of the flag at the battalion guard on foot in the courtyard of Königsberg on April 24, 1808 , painting by Richard Knötel

In the middle of the white banners was a black flying eagle with a bared sword in one mouth and a golden thunderbolt in the other . The eagle is the Prussian war eagle, which differs from the other heraldic eagles of Prussia by the thunderbolt. He hovers in a round silver field, which is surrounded by embroidered silver wreaths of bay leaves and berries in the Guard. In the line troops, the leaves of these wreaths were painted green, the berries red. Where the wreaths meet at the top, there is a royal crown and underneath in the silver central shield is a blue banner with the also silver inscription Pro Gloria et Patria . In the four corners of the flag, facing the eagle, were the signature of Friedrich Wilhelm III. (FWR), also surrounded by a wreath and crown. Between them in the middle of the sides of the flag are four burning grenades in silver, which turn the flame towards the eagle. Much of what was done in silver for the 1st Guards Regiment on foot can be found on the other flags in gold or colored embroidery or painting. This was linked to the traditional preference for silver over gold ornaments, which has existed since the soldier king.

A wide brass ring was attached to the flagpole of each battalion under the flag, in which the abbreviated name of the unit was engraved, e.g. 1.B.1.GRzF for the 1st Battalion of the 1st Guards Regiment on Foot. There was another special feature of this battalion. The flagstick was shot to pieces during the battle of Großgörschen . At this point, a wide clasp was attached to stably connect the two flagpole parts again. This clasp was marked Groß-Görschen, May 2nd, 1813 . In general, the idea of ​​replacing damaged flags or parts of them, as in the time of Frederick the Great, was abandoned. On the contrary, the more tattered and damaged a flag, the greater the honor the corresponding troops considered it to be. Since the flags were rarely unfurled and handled with the utmost care, such damage indicated combat missions, which increased the prestige .

The new flags

Over time, the flags awarded in 1808 wore out considerably. Usually they stood or hung unfurled in the flag hall of the Potsdam City Palace. When they were picked up from there, they were rolled up and wrapped in the flag sack , a protective cover with a metal tip that was supposed to protect the cloth from the elements and other risks. However, at the start of a battle in war, the flags were revealed and unfurled to serve as a point of direction for their battalion. In addition, it was of course immediately clear to every soldier that the battle would start as soon as the flag was blown. In addition to enemy fire, which had already become fatal to the flag of the 1st Battalion at Gross-Görschen and for the second time near Paris, the flag waving in the wind could easily get into the sword tips of the officers accompanying or into the bayonets during the course of action nearby soldiers caught, which resulted in further damage. However, the flags of the 1st Guards Regiment suffered more on foot than those of other units during peacekeeping. They were taken to parades comparatively often and of course also unrolled. Strong wind and the bare side arms of the companions, and occasionally the tips of the metal grenadier hats or spiked bonnets, will have left damage. After the Franco-Prussian War , all three flags of the regiment had become shadows of themselves. With the exception of the nailed-on fabric ring from the flag, nothing was left on the flagpole of the 2nd Battalion. The flags of the 1st and the Fusilier Battalion still had a few up to 10 cm long frayed scraps of fabric on the stick. At least the function of serving as a point of direction in battle could no longer be fulfilled by these field symbols . As long as the old emperor, Wilhelm I , was still alive, breaking the tradition and replacing the worn flags was out of the question. During the brief reign of his son , this topic was also secondary. It was only Wilhelm II who devoted himself to this matter. The 1st Guards Regiment on foot was of course not the only unit whose flags had suffered, even if there had been particularly severe signs of deterioration. Most of the new flags essentially followed the old designs. However, the size was reduced by 16 cm to 126 cm side length. The 1st Battalion of the regiment was the last to receive a new flag with the old, larger dimensions.

From the old flag, however, the tip and the two clips or rings that had been attached to repair the flagpole, which had been shot several times, were also adopted for the new flag and attached to the flagpole as a souvenir. The new flag was slightly different from the old one. It had the same design as the flag of the 1st Body Guard Battalion (No. 15) at the time of Frederick the Great. The cloth was white and had stripes of silver linen about every two centimeters . The Lahn threads should give the flag more strength and hold even after damage. The Silberlahn stripes also went through the corner names. Other deviations from the pattern of the old flag were:

  • The golden rococo shield with a central field made of white silver fabric, around which the silver laurel branch now wrapped,
  • the banner with the motto Pro Gloria et Patria was now silver and lifted from the midfield directly under the crown,
  • the names in the corners were exchanged for the new flag-donor and read "WR" (Wilhelm Rex),
  • the names were now made in gold,
  • Two laurel branches no longer wound around these names, but a laurel branch on the outside and a palm branch on the inside,
  • the four burning grenades or side flames between the corner medallions were missing.

The 1st Battalion received its new flag on the day of Groß-Görschen, May 2nd, almost a year after Wilhelm II took office and after 81 years of flying its old flag. A silver flag ring was attached to the flagpole. This bore the inscription: "Again under King Wilhelm II. 1889"

Five years later, on October 17th and 18th, 1894, the 4th Battalion received a flag of the same design, but in a normal, i.e. smaller, size. However, after its dissolution in 1897, the flag of the IV Battalion went to the Leibcompanie. The 2nd Battalion and the Fusilier Battalion received their new flags based on the same pattern and in a smaller size on August 30, 1900.

After the regiment was disbanded following the lost First World War , the flags were placed in the royal crypt in the Potsdam Garrison Church and hung there unrolled over the sarcophagi of the kings. On special occasions, celebrations with the traditional successor, the 9th Infantry Regiment , they were brought out again briefly. After the Second World War , they were first taken to Marburg, and in 1946 to the Wiesbaden Museum , where they stood veiled for a long time. On June 28, 1954, they were brought to Hohenzollern Castle to be reunited with the royal coffins that had already been brought there. It was only when these coffins could be brought back to Potsdam in 1993 that the flags were added to the remaining flags of the Old Army in the Rastatt Military History Museum , where they are still to this day.

Awards of the flags

The flags of the regiment received the following awards:

  • 0May 2nd, 1815: The flag of the 1st Battalion (grenadiers) was smashed at the battle of Groß-Görschen, a silver ring with the inscription Grosz Görschen on May 2nd, 1813 was attached over the break .
  • June 15, 1815: The 1st and 2nd battalions (grenadiers) received golden flag tips with the Iron Cross from 1813. All three flags received the ribbon to commemorate the 1813 campaign
  • January 15, 1837: All three flags received a silver ring with the troop designation I. Gd. R.
  • 01 January 1867: Presentation of the flags belts with swords of Remembrance Cross for the campaign in 1866 on the flags of the three battalions of the regiment.
  • June 16, 1871: The grenadier battalions received flag ribbons for the Iron Cross 1870, the flag of III. Battalions (fusiliers) received the Iron Cross from 1870 for the flag top. All three flags received the ribbon for the war memorial 1870/1871 .
  • June 13, 1872: The 1st battalion (grenadiers) received a flag ring for the flag, the flagpole of which was splintered by shrapnel in the sideline at Pont Iblon on December 21, 1870: a silver ring with the inscription: Pont Iblon before Paris on December 21, 1870 .
  • August 31, 1888: Award of the flag ribbon in memory of the command leadership of Kaiser Wilhelm II (October 20, 1883 to September 2, 1885) to the flag of the 1st Battalion (grenadiers). Flag ribbon made of white silk with poppy red. Ornaments and agraffes are silver, the embroidery and fringes are gold. Inscription: In memory of the command leadership Se. Majesty of the Emperor and King 1883/85.
  • January 27, 1889: A secular ribbon with a bow was awarded to all three flags, delivery on February 9, 1889. The secular ribbon consisted of a black silk ribbon with silver edges and fringes. On the upper band it read erected 1688 , below F. III. with Kurhut . On the back was the Brandenburg coat of arms. On the lower band was written W. II. With a royal crown. On the back it said 1888 . The corresponding secular ribbon was made from the same ribbon and had the inscription 1688 on the left and 1888 on the right . The ribbon and bow were held by a silver button with an embossed Prussian eagle.
  • 0May 2, 1889: The flag of the 1st Battalion (Grenadiers) was renewed with a silver flag ring with the inscription 1. GR I. B. and a silver flag ring with the inscription: Again under King Wilhelm II. 1889.
  • October 17, 1894: Flag IV. (Half) Battalion awarded, silver flag ring with the inscription 1. G. R. IV. B.
  • August 18, 1895: All four flags of the First Foot Guards Regiment were awarded the High Order of the Black Eagle. The flags of the first three battalions also received the flag ribbons with the clasps for the war memorial coin 1870/71 - Gravelotte. - St. Private. - Sedan. - Paris. - Le Bourget - awarded.
  • January 18, 1896: A silver commemorative ring was awarded to the 1st Battalion (grenadiers) with the inscription: In memory of January 18, 1896, the commemoration of the rebuilding of the German Empire. on which SM Kaiser Wilhelm II renewed the vow with this flag in hand to stand up for the honor of the people and the country, both externally and internally. An empire! A people! A God!
  • December 14, 1899: All flags of the regiment were awarded century banners . These consisted of the ribbon of the House Order of the Hohenzollern, i.e. a silver ribbon with three black stripes (on the edge and in the middle). There was a black and silver tassel at each end. The imperial crown was embossed on the front of one of the golden clasps and January 1, 1900 on the reverse . The other clasp wore W II with a royal crown on the front, January 1, 1900 and August 1, 1688 on the reverse .
  • 0May 6, 1900: The flag of the 1st Battalion (Grenadiers) was awarded a silver commemorative ring with a gold inscription: In memory of the oath of His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince on May 6, 1900.
  • August 30, 1900: The flags of the 2nd Battalion (Grenadiers) and the Fusilier Battalion were renewed. The troop markings on the silver flag ring read 1. GR II. B. and 1. GR FB
  • June 15, 1913: Award of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern with the Cross of the Grand Commander to all four flags. White ribbon with three black vertical stripes on which the chain was attached with silver ribbons at the lower end of the tip. The cross rested on an order ribbon laid in a rosette. Award of the body clip to all four flags. Seat of the silver clasps on the banderole above the century clasps. On the first clasp was W II. With the royal crown, on the 2nd clasp W II. With the dates 1888 and June 15, 1913
  • 0June 7, 1931: Awarding of a silver flag ring to the flag of the 1st Battalion (Grenadiers) with the inscription: With this flag in hand, the flag bearer of the 1st Battalion, Sergeant Paul Gehrke, fell on August 23, 1914 near St. Gérard in Belgium of the 2nd company. The nailing was done with the same nailing hammer that was used to nail the flags of the Guard Regiment on foot in Königsberg / Ostpr. served on April 24, 1808.
  • July 13, 1934: Awarding of the front combat crosses 1914/1918 on ribbon to all four flags. The ribbon was black-white / black-white-red striped lengthways. The honor crosses hung at the lower end.

Important and well-known members of the regiment

In keeping with the regiment's prominent position in the army, it has included a large number of important personalities in the course of its 110-year existence.

Heads of regiments

Rank Surname date
King Friedrich Wilhelm III. November 12, 1808 to June 7, 1840
King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. 0June 7, 1840 to January 2, 1861
King Wilhelm I. 0January 2, 1861 to January 18, 1871
Kaiser and King Wilhelm I. January 18, 1871 to March 9, 1888
Emperor and King Friedrich III. 0March 9 to June 15, 1888
Kaiser and King Wilhelm II. June 15, 1888 to November 28, 1918

With the exception of Kaiser Wilhelm II, whose second date is the abdication, these are the days of death of the heads of the regiments.

Regimental commanders

The position of regimental commander was not always occupied, especially in times of war. Again and again there are individual days or even longer periods of time in which the regiment did not have a commander appointed by the king. If someone was commissioned to lead the tour on an interim basis during these times, this will be indicated indented. Even the formation of the unit begins without a commander. The Second Lieutenant von Pogwisch was only in charge of the leadership during the initial period of the formation. The ranks of the commanders at the time of their appointment are given. From the fact that all commanders of the regiment, unless they fell in this post like Colonel von Roeder, became general following this assignment, it can be seen that only hand-picked career officers were appointed to this post.

Friedrich Karl as prime lieutenant of the regiment 1847/48
Carl von Prussia in the uniform of a staff officer of the regiment, around 1860
Rank Surname date
Second Lieutenant Julius Ludwig von Pogwisch 0November 4, 1806 to April 15, 1807
Colonel Gustav von Kessel April 16, 1807 to January 20, 1813
major Ernst Ludwig von Tippelskirch 0February 9 to June 20, 1813
major Friedrich Johann Carl Gebhard von Alvensleben June 20, 1813 to April 5, 1814
Lieutenant colonel Karl Heinrich Stephan von Block 0April 7, 1814 to February 13, 1816
Lieutenant colonel Eugen Maximilian von Roeder February 13 to April 22, 1816 (entrusted with the tour)
Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel Eugen Maximilian von Roeder April 23, 1816 to May 31, 1828
Colonel Karl von Prittwitz 0June 1, 1828 to September 20, 1835
Colonel Franz Karl of Werder September 20, 1835 to March 25, 1841
Lieutenant colonel Leopold of Gayl March 25 to August 28, 1841 (in charge of the tour)
Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel Leopold of Gayl August 29, 1841 to March 26, 1847
Colonel Eberhard Herwarth von Bittenfeld March 27, 1847 to May 4, 1850
Colonel Eduard von Brauchitsch 0May 4, 1850 to November 4, 1851
Colonel Albert von Blumenthal 0November 4, 1851 to August 5, 1856
Colonel Wilhelm Hiller von Gärtringen 0August 5, 1856 to March 22, 1859
Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel Karl Heinrich von der Goltz March 22, 1859 to March 7, 1863
Lieutenant colonel Bernhard von Kessel 0March 7, 1863 to May 1, 1863 (in charge of the tour)
Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel Bernhard von Kessel 0May 2, 1863 to May 17, 1867
Colonel Victor von Roeder May 18, 1867 to August 18, 1870
Lieutenant colonel August of Oppell August 18 to December 11, 1870 (regimental leader)
Colonel Octavio Philipp von Boehn December 11, 1870 to December 12, 1874
Colonel Anton Wilhelm Karl from L'Estocq December 12, 1874 to October 28, 1875
Lieutenant colonel Otto von Derenthall October 28, 1875 to October 19, 1876 (in charge of the tour)
Colonel Otto von Derenthall September 20, 1876 to November 23, 1882
Colonel Oskar von Lindequist November 23, 1882 to January 27, 1888
Colonel Hans Georg von Plessen January 27, 1888 to February 9, 1891
Colonel Oldwig Wilhelm Ferdinand von Natzmer 0February 9, 1891 to February 9, 1893
Colonel Gustav von Kessel 0February 9, 1893 to March 21, 1896
Colonel Georg von Kalckstein March 21, 1896 to June 15, 1898
Lieutenant colonel Karl von Plettenberg June 15, 1898
Gustav von Berg March 22, 1902
Karl Wilhelm von Willisen October 16, 1906
Friedrich von Kleist March 22, 1910
Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel Friedrich von Friedeburg March 20, 1911 to April 21
Vain Friedrich of Prussia 0August 1, 1914
Friedrich von Bismarck November 14, 1914 (regimental leader)
major Siegfried zu Eulenburg-Wicken 0November 6, 1916 (regimental leader)
Franz von Stephani April 28, 1917 (regimental leader)
major Siegfried zu Eulenburg-Wicken 0July 7, 1917 to December 11, 1918 (regimental leader)
Franz von Stephani August 27, 1918 (regimental leader)
major Siegfried zu Eulenburg-Wicken 0September 1 to December 11, 1918 (regimental leader)
Franz von Stephani September 26, 1918 (regimental leader)
major Siegfried zu Eulenburg-Wicken September 30th to December 11th 1918 (regimental leader)

Members of the House of Hohenzollern

Only the members of the ruling House of Hohenzollern are given with the respective entry date. Most of them stayed in the regiment and were employed as company commander or in higher positions. However, after their first assignment as company commander at the latest, most of the princes switched to active service in other regiments. They retained the right to wear the uniform of the 1st Guard Regiment on foot. Formally, they belonged to two regiments at the same time, but in the 1st Guard Regiment they were placed à la suite on foot .

  • 0January 1, 1807: Prince Wilhelm at the age of 10 as ensign (later emperor)
  • August 10, 1807: Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm at the age of 12 as Second Lieutenant (later King)
  • November 12, 1808: King Friedrich Wilhelm III. as head of the regiment
  • 0June 9, 1811: Prince Carl at the age of ten as Second Lieutenant (later General of the Infantry)
  • 0October 4, 1819: Prince Albrecht on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later Colonel General)
  • March 20, 1838: Prince Friedrich Karl on his 10th birthday as second lieutenant (later field marshal)
  • October 18, 1841: Crown Prince Friedrich on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later Emperor)
  • 0May 8, 1847: Prince Albrecht of Prussia on his 10th birthday as second lieutenant (later field marshal)
  • January 27, 1869: Crown Prince Wilhelm on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later Emperor)
  • August 14, 1872: Prince Heinrich on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later Grand Admiral)
  • November 14, 1875: Prince Friedrich Leopold on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later Colonel General)
  • February 10, 1878: Prince Waldemar on his 10th birthday as second lieutenant
  • July 15, 1884: Prince Friedrich Heinrich on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant († 1940) (son of Albrecht of Prussia)
  • September 27, 1886: Prince Joachim Albrecht on his 10th birthday as second lieutenant († 1939) (son of Albrecht of Prussia)
  • July 12, 1890: Prince Friedrich Wilhelm on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant († 1925) (son of Albrecht of Prussia)
  • 0May 6, 1892: Crown Prince Wilhelm on his 10th birthday as Second Lieutenant (later formally commander in chief of an army group in the First World War)
  • 0July 7, 1893: Prince Eitel Friedrich on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant (later major general)
  • July 14, 1894: Prince Adalbert on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant (later in the navy and in command of a cruiser in the First World War)
  • January 29, 1897: Prince August Wilhelm on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant (later SA-Obergruppenführer )
  • July 27, 1898: Prince Oskar on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant (later major general and founder of Johanniter-Unfall-Hilfe )
  • March 20, 1899: Prince Waldemar on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant
  • December 17, 1900: Prince Joachim on his 10th birthday as a lieutenant (later as a hussar officer in the First World War)

Regimental marches

The Moroccan bell tree bearer Ben Aissa 1905–1919
  • Old Russian March, AM I, 24 von Gluck (1st official presentation march of the regiment)
  • March of the Royal Regiment Grenadiers 1713–1740, AM II, 214 (with AKO of April 27, 1893 the 1st official presentation march of the regiment, replaced the aforementioned march)
  • March of the 1st Battalion and the Regiment Guard No. 15, AM I, 54 (with AKO on November 7, 1895 the 2nd official presentation march of the regiment)
  • March of the battalion Grenadiergarde No. 6, AM I, 55 (with AKO on November 7th, 1895 the 3rd official presentation march of the regiment)
  • March of the Yorck Corps , AM II, 37 by Ludwig van Beethoven (official parade march of the regiment during march in trains)
  • March based on motifs from the opera Moses by Gioacchino Rossini , AM II, 58 (official parade march of the regiment during march in regimental column)
  • Speed ​​march based on motifs from quadrilles, AM II, 126 by Johann Strauss (parade march in company fronts, 1st battalion)
  • Helenenmarsch (originally black and white ), AM II, 173 by Friedrich Lübbert (Parademarsch II. Battalion)
  • Parade March, AM II, 168 by Carl Faust (Parade March Fusilier Battalion)

Insinuation

The regiment belonged to the 1st Guard Infantry Brigade in Berlin of the 1st Guard Division (Berlin) of the Guard Corps (Berlin).

Calls

The Fusilier Battalion at Groß-Görschen-Kaja. May 2, 1813 , (painting by Carl Röchling )

Wars of Liberation

The Guards on Foot Regiment belonged to the Blücher Corps and took part in the following battles and engagements:

March Revolution 1848

German War 1866

mobilization

When the German War broke out in 1866, the regiment was last demobilized 50 years ago. Apart from the one-day mission during the March Revolution , which was now 18 years ago, the regiment had not gained any combat experience afterwards. The regimental chronicle indicates that the only active member of the regiment who had already been in the fire with the regiment was the king, and thus refers to the wars of liberation .

On May 5, 1866, the 1st Guards Regiment on foot as part of the Guard Corps received the order to mobilize, which should begin on May 6. The following weeks were marked by a bewildering number of detachments and reassignments of officers. While some were sent to newly formed reserve troops , higher staffs or to pick up reservists , horses and material, other officers were constantly coming into the regiment who had previously been assigned as course participants or instructors to schools, who were called up to the regiment as reserve officers or who were appointed Application to the king or a higher staff received permission to take part in the campaign with the king's body regiment, or at least to accompany it. Two examples illustrate the underlying mood:

“On the 14th, those officers who were to be handed over to the two Landwehr battalions Stettin and Graudenz were determined by the lot at the parade. It was just the oldest captains who were affected. - A great loss for the regiment - it is difficult for us to mention how painful hours of bitter disappointment this day included for a section of the officer corps who should not have been allowed to take part in the imminent campaign in the ranks of the regiment. "
“The officers on leave were immediately recalled by telegram. Prince Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen , à la suite of the regiment, who was returning from a trip from the Orient accompanied by Prime Lieutenant von Geyr and Count Finckenstein, received the dispatch in Constantinople. [...] The prince answered this question by asking not to be used in a staff, but to be allowed to participate in the campaign in the ranks of the regiment. "

The Prince Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen mentioned in the second quote should not survive the campaign.

At the same time as the telegrams to the officers, the reserve men and officers were called up. The first reservists arrived at the regiment in Potsdam on May 8 at around 11:30 a.m. A total of 1797 men - without officers - from the reserve were integrated into the regiment's association, which thus grew to roughly double the strength of peace. Fortunately, the necessary planning preparations for clothing and equipping the reservists had already been made since April by the regimental clothing commission, a committee of officers and NCOs assigned to this task.

At the same time Major von Kleist had made a complete list of all movable objects in the regiment's possession and made suggestions for keeping them in case of mobilization. The adjutants , who had to deal with most of the correspondence for their battalions or the regiment, were ordered to either take their offices home with them or to billet in them so that they could be reached and provided information at any time. On May 12th, 94 mobilization horses arrived and were distributed to the officers in the pleasure garden . For this purpose, the officers had been weighed beforehand in order to be able to provide everyone with a horse suitable for their weight. The training infantry battalion was disbanded and a replacement battalion was set up at the same time. On May 15, a commando fetched all of the ammunition intended for the regiment and the weapons for the reservists from the Spandau Citadel . All of this had to be meticulously recounted, checked and examined for usability. At the same time, all bare weapons ( swords , sabers , bayonets ) had to be sharpened, which alone took two days. At the same time, the battalion train was practiced in driving and stringing . The many substitute teams called up, whose military service had been a long or short time ago, needed a refresher course and had to get used to the exertions of marches , bearing and overcoming hardships, the burden of the knapsack and much more within a very short time . For this purpose, daily exercises were undertaken on the neighboring Döberitz military training area and long marches. In order to prepare for the fight, emphasis was placed on training that was as realistic and up-to-date as possible. “During the next period the regiment repeatedly drilled in the Bornstadt field , the man receiving up to twenty cartridges and a mass fire of great violence being developed. It was often drilled in deployed fronts, also lying down in this formation, as well as knocking down the riflemen when approaching the cavalry was also made the subject of the exercises. The regiment mostly drilled in half battalions, pulling the first line of company columns apart in order to withdraw the large battalion columns from the strong enemy fire. During this drill the regiment's vehicles were usually present and operated behind the front. ”An inspection of these exercises by the king took place on May 25th, to which civilian guests were also allowed. The Provost of Mansbach, who was present, was so enthusiastic about it that he transferred 1,000 thalers to the regiment as a foundation , an immense amount for the circumstances at the time.

In addition to these activities, controlled by the regiment or other staff, there was still enough space for more personal worries and joys. The officers brought enormous rapiers and dragons , which were sharpened to a precision , and bought private revolvers. Usually the hair has not yet been worn short. Now most of the officers had their hair cut short like a brush in order to be relieved of all unnecessary toilet skills . Few took out life insurance policies, and the large numbers of mail shirts that came in were accepted by even fewer. The bellicose enthusiasm was reinforced by the fact that smoking was suddenly allowed on the street, a first hint of relaxed rules. The enthusiasm was dampened somewhat when on May 26, 1866 the news of the General Command of the Guard Corps arrived that the regiment's departure was not yet imminent.

March out

On June 3, 1866, the command, felt to be relieving, arrived that the regiment should begin the march into the concentration room near Cottbus and that the march into the war zone was imminent. Now measures were also taken in the social field, which primarily aimed at the welfare of the crews and NCOs and their relatives. On June 4, all soldiers and officers' wives were made aware of what had been done to support the needy families who remained behind. The officers' wives were included because their primary responsibility was to carry out these measures. The monthly support was distributed to the families according to the number of children to be cared for, about which Paymaster Poppe from the regimental staff had to keep records. The families should collect the money personally from the regimental commander's wife every month. In order to do something for the reservists, who did not belong to the regiment and therefore were not entitled to funds from this fund, they were instructed that relatives in need should contact Countess Keller, who would give them further instructions .

On June 12, 1866, the order to march out for June 14 was received. On this day the regiment started at 3 a.m. in the pleasure garden to march from there. The relatives of the soldiers and especially the officers were also in large numbers on the square, and the citizens of Potsdam also took the opportunity to say goodbye. At 3:30 am the king came out of the castle to personally say goodbye to his regiment with the assurance that he would soon be back with it himself.

The campaign up to the battle of Königgrätz

The large number of officers assigned and detached had meant that only six of the regiment's twelve companies were led by captains . The rest were under the command of prime lieutenants . Since promotions followed one another much more slowly at that time, one can also imagine these officers as long-serving and experienced soldiers of a corresponding age. Three companies only had two company officers, while the rest had an officer or porter ensign as a leader for each of the three platoons. Structured in this way, the regiment arrived in Silesia on the morning of June 14 , where it was enthusiastically welcomed by the population and received very hospitably. At that time, the troops had no tents and were housed in civil quarters at the respective stage destinations of their marches . In addition, there was always an advance command in front of the regiments, which determined the quarters for all soldiers in the localities ordered. If the troops arrived at the village in the afternoon or evening, they were briefed by the quartermakers. In addition, the number of soldiers and from which unit or the names of the officers were usually written in chalk on the front doors. The landlords could also be instructed to feed the troops, for which they received financial compensation, as well as for accommodation. The troops were only allowed to bivouac in enemy territory or in emergencies , as the soldiers then had to sleep in the open air and were exposed to the rigors of the weather largely unprotected, which caused the sick leave to skyrocket and the combat strength to drop. However, the troops carried the necessary dishes to be able to prepare food at such a bivouac.

The 1st battalion had to march on as early as June 15, 1866, while the 2nd and the fusilier battalion still had a day of rest. The march went via Mollwitz, which the soldiers regarded as a good omen because of the victory that Prussian troops had won over Austrians there on April 10, 1741. In several days they marched as far as the Brieg region , around which the regiment gathered in various villages and where they held a few more exercises. The weather was hot and oppressive and troubled the soldiers, who had to get used to the mountainous landscape after they had left the plains. Since Silesia had been a Prussian province for over a hundred years, the reception was very friendly everywhere. Former grenadiers of the regiment came miles away to see their officers from before and to encourage their "successors". One even took his son to the regimental commander with the request to hire him for the current campaign, which he was refused. The equipment was daily appeals . The focus was on rifles, cartridge pouches and shoes. Before the march, special attention was paid to the shoes in particular, and they had been repaired to the point where there were two pairs for each soldier. The maxim of the extremely thrifty company economy of the Prussian army was, however, repairs before new purchases, as a result of which shoes were often quite worn out. Sentiment was further lifted well as a letter from the retired and as a special award to the regiment à la suite made General of Infantry of Grabow arrived. This promised the sergeant or commoners who the enemy the first trophy pick up a reward of 100 thalers. A trophy in this context meant a flag, kettledrum, cannon or other special military device. Should the person be so wounded that he would be disabled , he would receive an additional monthly allowance of three talers for the life of the general.

On June 22nd, 1866, the order came to begin attacking the Bohemian border. The guard corps received the order to proceed against Braunau . The extreme heat and the unfamiliar inclines caused many foot problems and even faints. On June 24, 1866, another day of rest was inserted, on which the troops were ordered for the campaign that was now imminent. The fusilier battalion was assigned to the avant-garde of the division, which was commanded by the regimental commander, Colonel von Kessel. The leadership of the regiment was transferred to his deputy.

After everything had gone in perfect order so far, the actual campaign began chaotically. On the evening of the 24th the order came from the regiment to leave helmets, side guns and drill jackets behind. The companies, each 300 men strong, entered separately from one another and loaded these pieces of equipment onto wagons as carefully as possible after they had been packed. You should then go back to Potsdam with this car. The collection and loading had just ended when the counter-order and the order to march off at 2:00 a.m. reached the companies at one o'clock in the morning. To make matters worse, it started to rain at this point. It was possible to keep the deadline and to hand out the equipment with the exception of the drill jackets, which were actually supposed to go back, but in the rain and in the dead of night without lighting, 300 helmets could not be missed properly. At two o'clock sharp, the battalions began the march along the muddy roads. The previous unrest took revenge, and a lot was lost along the way, including bayonets. On the morning of the 25th the weather cleared, and at a stop the order was given to load the rifles with live ammunition, which made a deep impression on everyone. On the 26th around noon the border was crossed at Ottendorf with a ringing game. The border village was deserted. A halt was made, and since it was already very hot again, the teams were sent into the houses to look for food and drink. You were in enemy territory. To protect their property, some women from the village came from the nearby forest and sold milk and bread to the troops. On that day they marched on to Dittersbach behind Braunau and took up quarters there. In Dittersbach the soldiers saw the enemy for the first time in the form of some Austrian dragoons who had been captured by the 3rd Guard Uhlans during a patrol battle . The prisoners were given there to guard the regiment and were the subject lebhaftesten interest. The 2nd Battalion was to wait for the artillery still hanging back in the village to cover them. The 1st Battalion was sent to Eipel without its 4th Company, which, to their great regret , was supposed to cover the baggage . Due to the previously canceled march, the baggage was increased by the soldiers' knapsacks, who lost some comfort during the rest, but were considerably relieved for the strenuous marches. The 1st Battalion reached Eipel and was immediately used as an outpost from there , and the next morning pushed on towards Trautenau . There on that day, June 27th, a battle between the 1st Army Corps and the Austrians, which the Prussians had lost, had taken place. The battalion and the bulk of its three companies now stood directly at the Aupa . On the afternoon of the 27th the artillery arrived in Braunau, where the 2nd Battalion had been waiting for them. Late in the evening the order came for these parts to advance further, but here too a company was excluded. The 7th Company received the order to stay as a stage crew in Braunau and to set up a hospital there and set up a fleet of vehicles for the general manager . The remaining three companies left Braunau with the artillery towards the Eipel at midnight and marched until dawn on the 28th, when the thunder of cannons could be heard from right and left. Since the marching column was moving in a narrow valley, it was not possible to determine the direction of the noise with certainty. It was actually the noise of two different battles that were taking place nearby, in Skalitz and Burkersdorf . At 5:00 p.m. Eipel was reached. The battalion, which had not yet been in the fire, met the first wounded here. "In Eipel there were wagons with the wounded, so that the battalion sometimes had to crawl through between them one by one [...]. People from the regiment were also on the wagons and several of the wounded officers could be visited during the march, which was delayed many times. ”The march continued from there through impassable ravines until 10:30 p.m. until one reached Raatsch near Trautenau, where they bivouacked. During this time, the fusilier battalion with the avant-garde was already well ahead and had already reached Raatsch. The avant-garde was supposed to be deployed in the battle of Trautenau, which General von Bonin , who was in command there, rejected it on the erroneous assumption that he had already won the battle.

Battle at Burkersdorf

On the following day, June 28, 1866, the 1st battalion marched in bulk behind the avant-garde to Burkersdorf, while the 2nd battalion was followed. The vanguard had received orders to attack the corps of Austrian General Gablenz , which had been victorious the day before at Trautenau, ahead of the division on the left flank . For this purpose, the fusilier battalion walked behind a battalion of the 3rd Guards Regiment in the second meeting , already developed with four companies side by side from Ober-Raatsch to the west towards Burkersdorf. After crossing the bottom of a brook, the companies climbed into the winding village of Staudenz, which is about 1500 meters from Burkersdorf across the thrust. When they stepped out of the village and continued towards Burkersdorf, they immediately received artillery fire. Although the fire did not claim any victims, it did scare away several colonies of bees who fought over the 10th and 12th companies. The completely unregulated evasive movements caused the two companies to deviate north. The area between Staudenz and Burkersdorf is very hilly and was criss-crossed by several small patches of forest and small brook grounds, which made it very confusing overall. As a result, the lost units only noticed their mistake when they had already reached about a kilometer north of Staudenz. The other companies that advanced in the direction of Burkersdorf tried to undermine the artillery fire. As a result, they very soon came under well-aimed fire from Austrian infantry, which was occupying the forest. In the meantime, Prussian artillery had arrived in Staudenz to support the fusiliers' advance. In the woods there was a brief, violent fight that even resulted in bayonet wounds. The Prussians won the forest battle and threw the Austrians back from the forest on Burkersdorf. However, the forces of the avant-garde were no longer sufficient to attack Burkersdorf. But it turned out to be a lucky coincidence that the 10th and 12th companies had lost their direction and were far to the north. As a result, an attempt by the Austrians to circumvent them, who was supposed to take hold of the guards in the woods flanking and behind, ran head-on into this flanking position. After a few hours later the main troops of the division had laboriously approached from Ober-Raatsch via Staudenz, the assault on Burkersdorf began and was quickly taken. The fusilier battalion had 10 dead men and 49 wounded men, including six officers. Six of the wounded, including an officer, later died as a result of their injuries.

Battle at the Königinhof

After Burkersdorf was taken by the 1st Guard Division , the troops moved into bivouac rooms around the village and as far as Ober-Raatsch, where they spent a relatively quiet night. On the following day, June 29, 1866, the avant-garde, which had meanwhile been slightly reinforced, was set on march south towards the Queen's Court at 12:00 . The march through the Kingdom Forest , just north of this town, was arduous because of the intense heat. Austrian equipment was lying around everywhere in the dense spruce forest, and sometimes entire pyramids of rifles were seen. When the avant-garde emerged from the forest a few hours later, one could see the Queen's Court, completely deserted by its inhabitants, and several columns of marching Austrian infantry. Colonel von Kessel immediately called the artillery forward and opened fire. He dispatched two fusilier battalions to attack the town immediately. One of them was to advance from the north, the fusilier battalion of the 1st Guards Regiment to sit on foot to the left and attack from the east. The first line of resistance of the Austrians, which was in high rye fields, was quickly thrown back on the outskirts. Once the Austrian defense had broken out, the Prussians quickly penetrated the town from all sides, where a lively local battle developed, in which an Austrian flag could also be captured. A wounded horse had blown up an Austrian column, so that a kind of alley was free. The Coronini regiment's flag suddenly rose from there . When the Prussian guard fusiliers saw them, they threw themselves into the alley and rushed towards the standard bearer. Guard fusilier Gottlieb Bochnia seized the flag. The Austrian did not want to let go of her, of course, and after a brief tug, the standard bearer was shot. The four-fold wounded Bochnia had won the first trophy of the campaign and received the promised reward of 100 thalers from General von Grabow. Two soldiers from the ranks of the 1st Guards Regiment who remained on the battlefield and 13 wounded fell victim to the battle at Königinhof. Officers were not affected this time.

Franco-German War 1870/1871

  • Battle of St. Privat on August 18, 1870 - The regiment attacked with enormous losses: 16 officers and 348 men killed, 20 officers and 694 men wounded, 14 men missing. The regimental commander, Colonel von Roeder, was among the dead.
  • Battle of Sedan on September 1, 1870
  • Siege of Paris September 19, 1870 to January 28, 1871
  • Battle of Le Bourget from October 28th to 30th, 1870, in which the regiment was only in reserve and
  • the failure of the Paris garrison at Le Bourget on December 21, 1870, when the flag of the 1st Battalion shattered in heavy shell fire.

First World War

Western Front 1914/15

Western Front 1915-1917

Eastern Front 1917

Western Front 1917/18

By November 9, 1918, a total of 97 officers, 480 NCOs and 4025 grenadiers and fusiliers had died in the regiment during the course of the World War.

Operations in the post-war period

The 1st Guard Infantry Division marched home and finally back to Potsdam. On December 11, 1918, the regiment moved to the old garrison in Potsdam, where it was demobilized on December 12, 1918 .

Most of the members of the regiment were released into civilian life. However, some went to the Baltic States to continue the war against the Bolsheviks . This " Grenzschutz Ost " or "Grenzschutz Kurland" called Freikorps or its 1st Battalion was under the command of Captain von Schauroth and was created on December 27, 1918. The troops in the Baltic States were under the command of Major General Rüdiger von der Goltz and called themselves "1. Guard Reserve Division ”.

Another part of the members of the First Guards Regiment on foot joined the " Freikorps Potsdam " and took part in the fighting in Berlin. The entire 1st Battalion of this Freikorps or Regiment Potsdam consisted of former members of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot. The 1st battalion was led by Lieutenant von Oppen, his adjutant was Lieutenant von L´Estocq, the entire Freikorps Potsdam was led by Major Franz von Stephani (1876–1939). Another Freikorps, which consisted mostly of former members of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot, was the "Freikorps Eulenburg", which was set up in 1919 by the last regimental leader, Major Siegfried Graf zu Eulenburg-Wicken . However, only parts of it made it to the Baltic States and was then transferred to the Provisional Reichswehr .

Dissolution and traditional follower

Provisional Reichswehr

With the Reichswehr Brigade 3, the IVth Battalion of Reichswehr Infantry Regiment 5 was created, in which almost exclusively former members of the 1st Guard Regiment served on foot. The Reichswehr Infantry Regiment 5 was led by Colonel von Taysen. First his 4th battalion led Hauptmann Gutknecht, from June 2, 1919 then Major von Schütz, his adjutant was Lieutenant von Kessel. On July 17, 1919, the battalion was reclassified to the 2nd battalion of Reichswehr Infantry Regiment 5, the leadership positions remained the same. On September 16, 1919 it was reclassified again to the 1st Battalion, the leader was still Major von Schütz, with his adjutant Lieutenant von Kessel (both officers of the former 1st Guards Regiment on foot). On May 10, 1920, the remnants of the Eastern Border Guard joined the 1st Battalion of the 5th Reichswehr Infantry Regiment as 1st company under Captain von Schauroth. Adjutant of the 1st Battalion was now Lieutenant Adalbert von Taysen (January 29, 1898 to June 1, 1995), during the First World War temporarily adjutant of the Fusilier Battalion in the 1st Guards Regiment on foot.

Company of the 9th (Prussian) Infantry Regiment

Reichswehr and Wehrmacht

On January 1, 1921, the 9th (Prussian) Infantry Regiment was established from the 5th Reichswehr Infantry Regiment , which moved into the old garrison of the 1st Guard Regiment on foot and in which many of the old officers of the regiment served from then on . The new regiment was also led by Colonel von Taysen, the 1st Battalion was still led by Major von Schütz with his adjutant, Lieutenant von Taysen. On March 23, 1921, the Reichswehr was officially founded and the newly formed 9th (Prussian) Infantry Regiment was assigned to the 3rd Division .

armed forces

The Bundeswehr guard battalion has been continuing the tradition since 1961 (initially only with the 2nd company, since 1991 as a battalion).

Möllendorff sword

In connection with the discovery of the Möllendorff sword - sword of General Johann Carl von Möllendorff (* May 20, 1791, † November 6, 1860), on March 4, 1803 as a commoner in the Regiment Guard No. 15 and from March 30, 1829 Commander of the 1st Battalion until July 12, 1837 - the tradition was again expressly recognized by the Federal President . Since the middle of the 19th century this sword was used in the 1st Guard Regiment on foot and then in the Infantry Regiment No. 9 . The officers of the Guard Infantry once dedicated this sword to the outgoing Infantry General von Möllendorff. On January 16, 1932, the ceremonial handover of the sword to the company commander of the 1st Company (traditional company) of the 9th (Prussian) Infantry Regiment, Captain Graf von Schwerin, took place in the long stable. In 1945 it was buried in Potsdam by the last porter - to protect it from the advancing Soviet troops - and only dug up again in 1991 by his sons. The request to the Federal President's Office as to who this sword now belongs to or who is the legal successor of the regiments mentioned was answered by the then Federal President , Richard von Weizsäcker , who was himself a captain in the 9th Infantry Regiment, that the sword should be sent to the guard battalion at the Federal Ministry of the Defense had to be given because it continued the tradition of the regiments.

As early as 1975, the sword of Vice Sergeant August Benderoth, 3rd Company of the 1st Guards Regiment on Foot, which was buried in the Rhenish soil during World War II and later exposed again, was awarded to the 2nd Company of the Guard Battalion of the Bundeswehr, with the dedication: "May the sword symbolically remind of General von Möllendorff's sword".

The von Rohdich legacy fund

Friedrich Wilhelm von Rohdich , General of the Infantry and Prussian Minister of War, who died in 1796 , brought his house with furniture in his will to a foundation for the support and education of the children of the Grenadier Guard Battalion (No. 6) .

“The income from my house with the pieces of furniture, which and which I have bequeathed to my subordinate Grenadier Guard battalion under the above conditions, should, as I hereby determine and determine, be used in" forever "for the education of the children of the battalion mentioned Find."'

The Legate House at Pariser Platz 3

From then on, the "von Rohdich'sche Legatenhaus", Pariser Platz 3 in Berlin, was rented and the proceeds were used to finance the education of the children of battalion members. After the dissolution of the Grenadier Guard Battalion (No. 6), the 1st Guards Regiment became a beneficiary on foot.

From 1824 onwards, the assets were managed by an EGRzF Immediate Commission. In 1880 the foundation was granted the rights of a legal person.

After the EGRzF was dissolved in 1918, the tradition was handed over to Infantry Regiment 9 (IR 9), which had been established in the meantime. A high increase in the value of the Berlin property and the resulting increase in rental income enabled the acquisition of three more properties in Potsdam. Until 1945 every child of a sergeant, team rank and civil servant of the traditional regiment IR 9 could be supported with a monthly training allowance of 30 marks each .

After the end of the war, the foundation was dissolved by the GDR and its assets were made public .

In 1993 the Federal Ministry of Defense revoked the dissolution of the foundation from 1951 and took over the foundation supervision . From the “Semper talis Bund” a separate board of the Legate Fund emerged, consisting of three active and three former soldiers of the guard battalion BMVg and the managing director. Since then, the foundation, which has been working with the Bundeswehr e. V. and the Bundeswehrsozialwerk e. V. has entered into a cooperation and a corporate member of the German Armed Forces Association e. V. is for the benefit of members of the Bundeswehr.

Monuments

Monument in Potsdam-Bornstedt

The oldest monument was inaugurated on September 2, 1872 in Katharinenholz in Potsdam-Bornstedt . It bore the names of the battles from the wars of 1866 and 1870/1871. Only part of the text has survived:

“The honorable memory of the officers, NCOs, etc. who fell gloriously in the campaigns of 1866, 1870 and 1871 with God for King and Fatherland. Teams dedicated by the First Guard Regiment on foot on August 18, 1872 "

The monument was probably blown up or dismantled by the rulers of the time immediately after the Second World War. The remains were in 2008 by the Association of Military Museum Brandenburg-Preußen e. V. salvaged.

The old memorial in St.-Privat

On August 18, 1899, Kaiser Wilhelm II, who had also given the suggestion, inaugurated the monument in St.Private. What was unusual for this time was that it had no motifs glorifying battle and that it also expressly paid tribute to the sacrifice made by its opponents, the French soldiers. This clearly sets it apart from the commemoration that was customary internationally at the time. Wilhelm II explicitly emphasized this idea in his speech:

“The shape chosen for the memorial differs from what is usually used on the battlefield. The armored angel leans peacefully on his sword, adorned with the regiment's motto: Semper talis. I therefore want this figure to be given a general meaning. It stands on this blood-soaked battlefield as a guardian for all fallen soldiers of both armies, the French as well as ours. Because brave and heroic for their emperor and their fatherland, the French soldiers also sank into their glorious grave. And when our flags bow in greeting in front of the bronze statue and rustle wistfully over the graves of our dear comrades, they may also wave over the graves of our opponents, whispering to them that we remember the brave dead with wistful respect. "

The inscription on the memorial laid out by Walter Schott read: “The good, unforgettable comrade. Wilhelm II and his First Guard Regiment z. Q. “
When Alsace and Lorraine fell back to France after the First World War, the monument was destroyed. The large statue was apparently melted down in 1922. Only the stone base has remained to this day.

The new memorial in St.-Privat

On August 20, 1967, two days after the 97th anniversary of the Battle of St. Privat , a new EGRzF memorial from donation collections of the Semper Talis Association was inaugurated at this location. The memorial stone, which had previously stood on the barracks yard of the guard battalion in Siegburg, was brought to St. Privat by the guard battalion and erected there together with pioneers from the Metz garrison . Inscription:

On August 18, 1870, the commander Colonel v. Roeder and 361 officers, NCOs and men of the First Guard Regiment on foot. Semper talis.

The Semper Talis Monument in Potsdam

Wilhelm von Hahnke on foot as a lieutenant in the 1st Guard Regiment; the later founder of the Semper Talis Federation

On June 24, 1924, the “Semper Talis Monument”, created by the sculptor Franz Dorrenbach , was inaugurated next to the Potsdam Garrison Church. On it the fallen soldiers of the First Guards Regiment were honored on foot. But the troops that emerged from the regiment, such as the 1st Guard Reserve Regiment, were also included.

The memorial bore the inscription on its front under the relief medallion:

SEMPER TALIS

The dedication inscription could be read on the front of the base:

THE FIRST
GUARD REGIMENT ON FOOT
AND
ITS TRUE DEAD
1914–1919

On the back was the inscription:

For the emperor and the empire For the king and the fatherland, 96 officers, 480 non-commissioned officers, 4025 men died in the First Guard Regiment on foot
In the First Guard Reserve Regiment his leader was Lieutenant Colonel von Schmidt, 106 officers, 353 NCOs, 3,059 men and, in other units, countless comrades from both regiments.

The memorial was badly hit on April 14, 1945 during a British air raid on Potsdam. A resolution of the Allied Control Council in 1946 formed the basis for the removal of the remains of the partially destroyed monument. As a special humiliation, former members of the First Guard Regiment were forced to carry out this demolition on foot:

“[…] Through traitors, the communist rulers at the time learned the names of comrades who lived in Potsdam and had served in the First Guard Regiment. They forced them to demolish the memorial. Comrade Offers was one of them. He was a post at the memorial at the inauguration ceremony and lived in the Russian colony in 1945. He was fatally injured by a piece of rubble. He was carried dead from the place. [...] The ruins of the memorial were scattered to the wind. "

- Memories of the Potsdam Garrison Church

  • Monument in Potsdam-Bornstedt

  • Old monument in St. Privat

  • Inauguration of the monument in Potsdam near the garrison church

societies

The music association "Traditional Music Corps First Guard Regiment on Foot eV" based in Lennestadt has taken the musical traditions of the regiment on foot as a model and gives concerts in historical uniforms.

Trivia

At the age of 18, under pressure from his father, the later poet Franz von Gaudy joined the 1st Regiment Guards on Foot in Potsdam. There he did his first satirical studies with comrades or wrote ironic verses about the dreary drill. The reactionary mood prevailing among the troops at the time particularly stimulated Heinrich Heine's imitator to object and provoke. Due to debts and duels, he was soon transferred to a line regiment in Breslau , but due to a lack of alternatives, he remained in the Prussian military as an officer in remote Silesian border garrisons until 1833, even though he had no internal drive to do so.

The captain's uniform in the exhibition room of the town hall in Köpenick

Friedrich Wilhelm Voigt, who became known as Captain von Köpenick , bought uniform parts of a captain of the 1st Guards Regiment on foot from various second-hand dealers. In this uniform he led on 16 October 1906 Köpenickiade in Rathaus Köpenick by. For his coup he recruited soldiers from two other guards regiments, namely six soldiers from the 4th Guards on Foot Regiment and four so-called "cockchafer" (soldiers from the Guards Fusilier Regiment ).

literature

General

  • Constantin Kling: History of the clothing, armament and equipment of the Royal Prussian Army. First part: The infantry in 1806. Weimar 1902, Putzer & Hölzer.
  • Jürgen Kraus: The German army in the First World War. Uniforms and equipment 1914–1918. Militaria Publishing House, Vienna 2004.
  • Carl Röchling: Our army. Everyday soldiers' life around 1890. Reprint Hamburg 2001, Mittler.
  • Louis Schneider: Instructions book for the infantryman. 8th edition, Berlin 1875, reprint Beckum 1980, Bernhard Vogel.
  • Hans-Peter Stein / Military History Research Office : Symbols and ceremonial in German armed forces from the 18th to the 20th century. 2nd revised edition, Augsburg 1991, Weltbild .
  • Georg Ortenburg, Ingo Prömper: Prussian-German uniforms from 1640-1918. Munich 1991, Orbis.

To the guard or to the EGR

  • Chronicle of the First Guards Regiment on foot and its regular troops 1675–1900. Published on behalf of the regiment, published by Martin Oldenbourg in Berlin 1902.
  • Honor list of those in the First Guard Regiment z. F. Officers, NCOs and men who fell, missed and died during the German struggle for existence 1914-18 (=  memorial sheets of German regiments. Troops of the former Prussian contingent . 35a). Stalling, Oldenburg iO / Berlin 1924 ( digitized version of the Württemberg State Library ).
  • Ernst von Eisenhart-Rothe , Martin Lezius (ed.): The book of honor of the guard. Volumes I. and II: The Prussian Guard in the World Wars 1914-1919. edited and with the support of the comradely associations of the former Guard Corps and numerous members of its formations, Berlin / Stuttgart without year, tradition Wilhelm Kolk / Vaterländischer Verlag Oskar Hinderer.
  • Wolfgang Paul: The Potsdam Infantry Regiment 9. 1918–1945. Text volume, 2nd supplemented and improved edition, Osnabrück 1985, Biblio.
  • Carl von Reinhard: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on foot traced back to the historical origins of the regiment from the 1st Body Guard Battalion, the Guard Regiment and the Grenadier Guard Battalion 1740–1857. Potsdam 1858.
  • German Soldiers 'Yearbook 1970. 18th German Soldiers' Calendar, Munich 1970, sign.
  • Semper-Talis-Bund e. V .: Semper Talis news papers. (Pre-war) No. 33, 71 (anniversary edition for the 250th anniversary of the First Guards Regiment on Foot), Potsdam 1928–1938, self-published.
  • Gustav von Waldersee: The first guard regiment on foot. Digitized

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Chronicle of the First Guards Regiment on Foot and its Tribe Troops 1675–1900. Berlin 1902.
  2. ↑ a b c d e History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on foot from January 1, 1933; without author
  3. ↑ a b c A. Mila: History of the clothing and equipment of the royal Prussian army in the years 1808 to 1878, Berlin 1878, unchanged reprint Krefeld 1970, p. 89f.
  4. ↑ a b Chronicle of the First Guards Regiment on Foot and its Tribe Troops 1675–1900. Berlin 1902, p. 6.
  5. ↑ a b Chronicle of the First Guards Regiment on Foot and its Tribe Troops 1675–1900, Berlin 1902, p. 7
  6. ↑ Journal for Heereskunde No. 352 Nov./Dec. 1990 p. 156
  7. ↑ http://www.erstes-garderegiment.de/
  8. ^ A b L. Schneider: The Soldier's Friend's Instructions Book for the Infantryman, unchanged reprint of the 8th edition, Berlin 1875, on behalf of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Heereskunde e. V., Beckum 1980; P. 12
  9. ↑ L. Schneider: The Soldier's Friend's Instructions Book for the Infantryman, unchanged reprint of the 8th edition, Berlin 1875, on behalf of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Heereskunde e. V., Beckum 1980; P. 12f.
  10. ↑ L. Schneider: The Soldier's Friend's Instructions Book for the Infantryman, unchanged reprint of the 8th edition, Berlin 1875, on behalf of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Heereskunde e. V., Beckum 1980; P. 14
  11. ↑ Martin Lezius: flags and standards of the old Prussian army according to the status of August 1, 1914 , Munich 1981, ISBN 3-88014-070-7 , p. 43
  12. ↑ It was the first new flag he had awarded.
  13. ^ Martin Lezius: flags and standards of the old Prussian army. ; Stuttgart 1935, Franckh'sche Verlagbuchhandlung
  14. ↑ http://www.erstes-garderegiment.de/ and Zeitschrift für Heereskunde No. 32, August 1931
  15. ^ Chronicle of the First Guards Regiment on Foot and its Tribe Troops 1675–1900. Berlin 1902, p. 6, information up to 1898.
  16. ↑ fallen at Groß-Görschen on May 2, 1813
  17. ^ A Bernese in the service of three monarchs Berlin-Warsaw-Naples ; in: Zeitschrift für Heereskunde No. 394 1999
  18. ↑ Gustav v. Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on Foot 1857–1871. Berlin 1881, p. 41.
  19. ↑ Gustav v. Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on Foot 1857–1871. Berlin 1881, pp. 41-53.
  20. ↑ Gustav v. Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on Foot 1857–1871. , Berlin 1881, p. 45.
  21. ↑ Gustav v. Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on Foot 1857–1871. , Berlin 1881, p. 44.
  22. ↑ Gustav von Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on foot 1857–1871. , Berlin 1881, p. 47.
  23. ↑ Gustav v. Kessel: History of the Royal Prussian First Guard Regiment on Foot 1857–1871. , Berlin 1881, p. 63.
  24. ^ Jürgen Kraus: Handbook of the units and troops of the German army 1914-1918. Part VI: Infantry. Volume 1: Infantry Regiments. Verlag Militaria, Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-902526-14-4 , p. 15.
  25. ↑ http://www.legatenfonds.de/
  26. ↑ in: Semper Talis. (Journal of the Semper Talis Bund), No. 41, March 1972, p. 464ff.
  27. ^ Traditional music corps 1st Guards Regiment on Foot eV
  28. ^ Johannes Edmund Reiske: Franz Freiherr von Gaudy (= Palaestra Band LX). Verlag Mayer & Müller, Berlin 1906, pp. 5-7.

Remarks

  1. ↑ Soldiers who fled from prisoner-of-war and returned to the troops were referred to as self-ransomed . In contrast, those released from prisoner-of-war captivity were referred to as rancioners
  2. ↑ At that time there was no vacation in today's sense where you can claim a certain number of days per year. There was even no entitlement to vacation. Soldiers and officers could apply for leave from their superiors if necessary. Depending on the desired duration, a higher authority had to approve the application.
  3. ↑ Son of Prince Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen , last ruler of the Hohenzollern native land
  4. ↑ developed, that is, rows drawn apart and not close together
  5. ↑ At that time the officers' only service weapon was a sword (grenadiers) or saber (fusiliers). In the regimental chronicle, these arms purchases were humorously commented as follows: Apparently one was not entirely clear about the character of the upcoming battles, and the excited imagination created images of fighting and scuffle with Croats and all kinds of irregular war people
  6. ↑ A lady-in-waiting of the queen who had two sons as officers and officer cadets in the 1st Guard Regiment on foot
  7. ↑ a Prussian mile measured 7.5 kilometers
  8. ↑ Three thalers for a grenadier or fusilier corresponded to one and a half times the monthly salary, 100 thalers were the pay for more than four years.
  9. ↑ The drill jackets were white and were usually worn in the barracks for training or work. They were more durable and cheaper than the actual blue uniform skirts.
  10. ↑ The 4th Company was still behind to guard the luggage
  11. ↑ This meant that the company should requisition suitable vehicles from the local farmers and entrepreneurs .
  12. ↑ The people in the regiment didn't necessarily know each other personally, but they could tell who they belonged to by looking at their uniforms.
  13. ↑ Three, four or more rifles put together are called a rifle pyramid. These are usually put together when the troops are resting or doing work that would interfere with the guns.